Dr Flip
Troiano MD, Greensquare Center
Everybody talks about health, but what is health? A Google search
for "definition of health" returns 451 million citations. The
"Oxford Dictionaries" say health is the state of being free from
illness or injury, but this is too limiting. The World Health
Organization takes a broader view; Health is not merely the absence
of disease..." It is a state of complete physical, mental and social
well-being". This definition of health is more comprehensive and
includes critically important issues.
Now that we have a definition for what health is, how do you
translate this into your daily life. The first thing to ask is; "How
am I doing now?"

Do I feel
good? Can I physically and mentally do the things I want to do? Am I
competently managing the daily stress in my life? The answer to
these questions gives you a snapshot of your current physical,
mental and social well-being, but this picture does not always do a
good job of telling you when your systems reserves are being
depleted and what problems are coming in the future. A single frame
from a movie may tell you what's happening right now but may not
tell you what's going to happen in the next scene. If you're feeling
good now, there may be very little indication that you are
developing chronic problems that will manifest themselves in the
future.

To be healthy you
have to be concerned not only with present issues but with factors
that will affect future well-being. Can you prevent the development
of chronic diseases? If you already have a chronic disease can you
slow the progression or possibly reverse its course? The answers to
these questions are: Yes you can!
In order to do this, though, you need a more comprehensive
preventative approach than what the medical system commonly
provides. Currently, you get blood pressure meds to lower your high
blood pressure, insulin or metformin to lower your high blood sugar,
and cardiac catheterizations and stents to bypass your plaque. All
of these interventions are extremely important, in fact can be
lifesaving, when needed. Most of our chronic diseases, diabetes,
hypertension, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune diseases and
cancers develop over years to decades. The more important question
for each of you is: "Before I show overt signs and symptoms that
need to be treated, is there a way to determine, that I have begun
to develop a chronic disease and change the course while I'm still
feeling good?
Genetics and environment both play important roles.

Your genetics are
a baseline, but your environment plays a significant role in how
your genes are actually expressed. If your environment leads to
excess oxidative stress and you are nutritionally deficient in the
factors that are needed to adequately breakdown toxins, how your DNA
is actually expressed will change. Important environmental factors
include sleep patterns, nutritional status, exercise patterns,
stress, support systems, and exposures to toxins.
A person whose diet is overwhelmed by Omega 6 fats, excess
carbohydrates, excess neuro-excitatory stimulants, i.e. aspartame
from diet soda will be at a much higher risk of developing
hypertension, heart disease, stroke, cancer and chronic immune
disorders. A person raised in an environment exposed to heavy metals
high levels of PCBs or other plastic will be in a much higher risk
for developing heart disease and cancer.

Do you Exercise 5
times/week for 30 mins? This is important because doing so has been
shown to decrease all-cause mortality by up to 30%. Specifically it
reduces the risk of stroke by 25%, reduces the risk of heart attack
and cardiac death by 40%., reduces high blood pressure by 10 to 15
mm Hg, reduces stress, reduces the risk of colon, breast, and
prostate cancer, and facilitates detoxification.1

Do you sleep 7 or
more hours per night? This is important because not doing so is
associated with neurological diseases: stroke, multiple sclerosis
and Alzheimer's disease, slower brain cell repair and regeneration,
childhood obesity, GERD – heartburn, abnormal appetite regulation ,
increased high blood pressure and increased risk of developing high
blood pressure, accelerated loss of visual short-term memories, and
reduced testosterone production in young healthy males by 15%.2
Do you eat 9 servings of vegetables and whole Fruits per day? This
is important because, with each 1-serving increase intake of fruits
or vegetables research has shown an additional 4% lower risk for
coronary heart disease. 3
Is you resting heart rate <=65? This is important because for every
10 bpm that your resting heart rate is more than 65 your risk of
cardiovascular disease and premature death increases by 10 -20%.4
Is you fasting blood sugar less than 84? This is important because
for every 1 point that you fasting morning blood sugar is above 84
your risk of developing diabetes within 10 years, increases by 6%.5

Not only is it
important to feel good now, but it is extremely important to
evaluate and monitor the internal signs that are early indicators of
chronic disease. This can be accomplished with a thorough functional
medicine evaluation.
The functional medicine, approach begins with a complete medical
history that identifies when and how problems began and possible
predisposing factors, both genetic and environmental. It continues
with identifying current issues, environmental, nutritional, and
potential toxins that either activate or perpetuate the problem.
These are all evaluated in conjunction with important lifestyle
issues, including nutritional status, quality and amount of
exercise, sleep habits, life stresses, and support systems. This is
followed by targeted laboratory testing to evaluate, hormones,
energy production, the state of the immune system, the level of
oxidative stress, neurotransmitters, digestion, nutrient
deficiencies, and the ability to metabolize or detox normal
byproducts or toxins. All of this forms the basis for individually
tailored treatment plans that integrate medicines, nutritional
supplements, vitamins, minerals, lifestyle modifications,
botanicals, and other alternative treatments with the goal to
prevent or slow the development of chronic diseases and to maintain
health, the state of complete physical, mental and social
well-being.